THE family of a woman who fought a 20-year battle against cancer have handed over the last cheques from the £21, 542 she raised over the course of her illness.

Margaret Parkin, of Belper, died in January, aged 71, after spending years fighting ovarian cancer and fund-raising along the way.

After her first chemotherapy treatment in 1994, Miss Parkin asked her consultant how much the treatment had cost.

When she was told the figure was around £10,000, she was determined to raise at least that amount.

Her brother, John Parkin, and sister, Dorothy Stevenson, who also live in Belper, yesterday handed over the final £1,000 their sister had raised to the oncology department at the Royal Derby Hospital.

Mrs Stevenson, 78, said: "There are some people who will fight to their last breath and Margaret was like that.

"Even in her final year, although she started to slow down, she still would always rather walk to places over getting a lift.

"She wouldn't give up."

Miss Parkin raised the cash through a series of fun-runs and charity walks.

The money went towards a variety of causes, including the chemotherapy suite, research, the oncology library and the haematology and leukaemia fund.

Mrs Stevenson said her sister was always very happy with the care she received at the Royal Derby Hospital.

She said: "My sister had several spheres of care, her home, her family, her GP surgery and the Royal.

"She was so full of appreciation and gratitude to all of the staff, and not just the people at the top either, from the people who took her blood to the consultants, she wanted to thank them all."

Mrs Stevenson said that, since her sister's death, she has been overwhelmed by words of comfort.

She said: "Someone I didn't know approached me on the street and said 'you won't know me but I know you're Margaret's sister I just want to tell you how glad I am to have known her'."

Mr Parkin, 77, said: "She was the sort of person who knew exactly what she wanted and how she wanted it."

Miss Parkin, of Belper Lane, previously told the Derby Telegraph: "I cope one day at a time, one step at a time. When I do a sponsored walk, sheer guts get me round. You do it if you set your mind to it."